The Light and Dark of the Black Sister
by X22
Summary: After having to suffer the worst of her Father's wrath, the only and clearly unwanted daughter of Orion and Walburga Black has to face starting a new school. Final glad to be going to her dream school of Hogwarts, Nova Celeste Black struggles with her anxiety and claustrophobia as well as having to deal with her dark secret that she has kept hidden from her family for so long.
1. Chapter 1

The air was thick with a tense atmosphere as the only daughter of Orion and Walburga Black stood in the centre of the dark and gloomy drawing room of number twelve Grimmuald Place, panicking building within her as she stood before the man that called himself her father, watching as his pale hands tightened around the already crumpled piece of parchment. She had tried so had all summer to hide that one letter, to save herself from his wrath, for there was nothing worse than a father's wrath, especially when that father is as cruel and unforgiving as Orion Black.

"You got _expelled_?!" Orion's voice boomed through the small room, smashing off the dull walls that were decorated with the tapestry of the entire Black family or the 'Noble House of Black' as it was often referred to as.

Nova Celeste Black flinched at the volume of his voice as it encouraged the panic and anxiety that was already festering inside her to increase. She didn't dare to breathe, in fear of infuriating the beast more and yet it seemed that the quieter the young witch stayed, the angrier the monster became.

"Well?" He barked and spat his degrading and hurtful words, slamming his hand down hard upon the dark mahogany desk. The impact was so great that Nova feared the wood would split and smash under the force.

"Explain yourself!"

"P-please father," Nova swallowed slightly as she tried not to break and crumble under his stone-cold glare, knowing all too well that that was what he wanted.

"It was not _my_ faul…"

A harsh slap echoed through the room as Nova's declaration of innocence was abruptly cut short. She whimpered as she held her burning cheek where her father had struck her without a second of hesitation.

"I have had _enough_ of your _pathetic_ excuses Nova!"

"I get you into one of the _best_ magic schools in the hope that it would teach someone as _useless_ and _weak_ as you how to become a better witch, and your way of repaying me is by disgracing the Noble House of Black further than you and your disgraceful twin have!"

There it was, the usual insults and degrading words that were designed to chip away slowly at her self-esteem. Any other child or young adult may have cried, screamed or tried to defend themselves against the untrue words that were being spat at them. Not Nova.

She stood there, silently letting him degrade and insult her. She was used to it. From the young age of six, both her mother and her father had told her how useless she was, how she was a mistake that never should have happened. They had never tried to be happy that she had been born and they were not the type to hide their disgust.

The young witch clenched her jaw in anger, tired of the constant abuse. She was tired of listening to her father insult her beloved twin brother. She glared at her father as she felt the anger rising within her, overpowering her fear.

"I didn't do _anything_ wrong!" She repeated, standing her ground and sticking to her words. The fire that had burned through the office of the headmistress of Beauxbaton's Academy of Magic had indeed not been caused by her, and yet her words fell upon deaf ears.

Silence hung between them as she readied herself for the usual beating that followed whenever she spoke out of turn or said something that Orion did not like, and yet nothing followed. Nova didn't know whether to feel relieved or frightened as she watched Orion sit back in his chair. His hands pressed together as he waited, letting her into a false sense of security.

"Enlighten me then," His voice slicing through the silence like a butcher's knife cutting through an animal's bone.

"If the fire was not cause by you, then who was it?"

Even though she knew her words meant nothing to him. Even though she knew he didn't care that she was telling the truth. Even though she knew what he was doing, it didn't stop her. Maybe she just wanted to believe that somehow the man that sat before her might become the father that she had always wanted, that he might actually believe her.

"It was Verna Babineaux," She declared bravely.

Verna Babineaux was a typical snobby pureblood witch who spent her years at Beauxbaton's Academy terrorising other students who either originated from a different bloodline of witches and wizards or who did not come from a wealthy family like she did. Verna made it her mission to ruin Nova's time at the Academy because of the young witch's refusal to participate in the latter's acts of humiliation and bullying.

Her father's eyes grew colder at her declaration, anger and rage radiating upon his face. It wouldn't take a genius to work out that he was offended but her honest words. Nova didn't need to be a talented Legilimens to know that her father saw Verna as more of a worthy daughter than the one standing before him.

"Liar!" Orion barked furiously.

"How dare you speak of her like that! Verna Babineaux is a far more powerful and talented witch than you will ever be, not to mention a far more beautiful lady!"

Nova clenched her fists, digging her nails into the palm of her hands. Her anger had been short recently and her temper thin, her strength mostly wasted on hiding her secret but she could feel it getting ready to erupt. She didn't know how much more of her father's hurtful words she could take.

"That is _your_ opinion…" The young witch muttered under her breath. Her words shocked even herself as a stunned silence filled the toxic air once more.

Everyone has that little annoying voice inside their heads that tells them to stay quiet and to hold their tongue in tense situations not to say anything stupid especially when standing in front of someone as cruel as Orion Black.

Silence filled the room as the atmosphere grew colder, the temperature shrinking to as though to avoid having to witness the inevitable brutality that was slowly but surely approaching.

That voice inside Nova's head was telling her to run as her father slowly rose from behind his desk and yet the brave witch remained frozen to the spot as the tall, strong built man slowly made his way closer to her.

Her heart was pounding with fear as the tense seemed to rise as the closer Orion got to his daughter. She could see his hand tightening around the handle of his cane and before Nova could react or even try to defend herself, she found herself on the ground as the metallic dragon head handle smashed into her face, the silver tipped fangs digging into her pale cheek as the force of the impact knocked her to the dustless floor of the drawing room.

"Don't you _ever_ speak to me like that again, get up you pathetic, worthless little mistake!"

Nova gasped in pain as she felt warm blood begin to drip down her usually pale face as she scrambled to her feet as fast as she could. You would think that she would be used to his harsh words and unnecessary beatings by now after having had dealt with them since she was a young girl. But he was her _father_ was he not meant to _protect_ her instead of berating, beating, torturing and abusing her? Why was she always waiting for him to change? Why did she still think this man was _capable_ of caring about her?

"Get out of my sight, you ungrateful child, until I have decided what to do with you and where to send you! You'll be lucky if I even let you out of your room at this rate!" Orion demanded harshly as he walked behind his desk.

Nova wasted no time in hurrying from his office and bolting past her twin brother as panic filled inside her, festering and feeding at her panic attacks as she headed for the grand staircase that led to the first floor.

"Nova! Hey, wow wait! Novy!"

The sudden sound of Sirius' kind and caring voice made Nova stop in her tracks at the bottom of the staircase. Her hand tightened around the banister as she felt tears of panic, self-hatred and fear burn within her grey eyes. She knew she couldn't let herself be caught crying or else she would be in even more trouble than she already was.

"Nova, what happened?" Sirius asked her as he stood behind her. Sirius had always been taller than Nova, he stood around just over six feet tall, while she was just around five and a half feet tall.

Nova flinched as she felt him place a gentle hand upon her shoulder as he turned her around to face him. She let her long black hair fall in front of her face as she attempted to hide the fresh bruises and wounds that decorated her pale cheek.

"Father found out that I got expelled from Beauxbatons…" Nova explained, keeping her eyes locked on the floor like she always did when she was hiding injuries from him.

Sirius was no fool. He always knew what was going through his twin's head. The Black twins had a special bond, they could feel each other's pain, they knew when the other was sick and he always knew when she was on the verge of a panic attack.

Noticing the signs that indicate she was hiding something, Sirius carefully hooked his index finger under her chin and gently directed her face upwards so that he could see her face. His grey eyes instantly narrowed and his jaw clenched as he carefully brushed the long strands of black hair out of her face.

Nova swallowed as she looked up to her brother, watching his identical grey eyes darken as he seen the wounds and the bruises. She hated it when Sirius looked so angry and felt so guilty when he got in trouble because of her.

"That bastard," Sirius muttered as he pulled Nova into his arms, into a warm and protective embrace.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you, I won't let him hurt you again!"

Nova let herself smile slightly as she hugged her brother tightly and rested her head under his chin. If there was anywhere she could find compassion, love and protection it was in the arms of her brother.

"I'm alright Sirius, really!" She told him, putting on a brave smile which her brother could see through in an instant.

"Nova, don't lie to me like that, I know you aren't okay," Sirius sighed heavily.

"Talk to me, I can feel the panic inside you,"

Nova sighed heavily and looked up at her brother. He knew her better than anyone else. He was always there to comfort her. He was the only one who knew what she was truly capable of.

"I don't know what he will do to me know Siri!" She told him, swallowing back the tears that threatened to escape her grey eyes.

"What if he separates us!? He said that I'd be _lucky_ if he ever lets me out of my room again!"

"Mother wouldn't let him separate us," Sirius said with a chuckle.

"Merlin forbid she'd ever have to lift a finger to help us in any way!"

Nova gave a sad laugh at his true words. Walburga Black was far from the definition of what a mother should be. She preferred to stay and torture her eldest children whilst parading the youngest around like a show dog. Walburga was a cruel, spiteful and heartless woman who believed in the traditional pure-blood view that muggles and muggle-born witches and wizards should be eradicated from the world and those who were of pure-blood should remain in charge.

"Yeah, the only one that she wouldn't mind looking after would be Regulus!" Nova pointed out, thinking sadly of the amount of pressure that their parents mounted upon the shoulders of their younger brother.

Silence hung between the twins for a few minutes as Sirius pounded a thought that had been playing on his mind for a long time. Why did they favourite Regulus? Why did Regulus _follow_ their delusional and awful views?

"It's okay Nov, we'll leave here soon, me and you!" Sirius finally broke the silence as he hugged Nova close to him.

"But we can't just _le_ ave Regulus here with _them_!" Nova gasped shocked as she pulled back from the embrace. Her grey eyes looked at those mirrored in her brother's with shock and confusion. Sirius sighed.

"But they don't hurt him Nova, they seem to _care_ about him," Sirius explained as he sat down on the stairs and ran one of his hands through his naturally messy black hair.

"He'll be safe here…"

Nova sighed heavily. She could feel his brother's doubt and she knew all too well that if they left Regulus here they would regret it more than they regretted being in this prison already. Sitting beside her brother, Nova took a deep breath.

"They don't hurt him because we protect him, what happens when we aren't around and Reg begins to rebel against them?"

It didn't take that long before Nova could see her brother's mind racing through the multitude of possibilities that could happen to their precious little brother when they were away, safe if that was even a possibility. It was not difficult to see how much these siblings cared for their little brother and each other.

"Alright, we'll take him with us!" Sirius said as his face went whiter than usual even though he was always pale as was Nova and most of the Black family.

Nova smiled and hugged him. The thought of the three of them being able to escape from the cruel grasps of their parents was enough to give them the hope and strength to get through this last few months or so free from them.

"What do you two think you are doing?" Orion's snarl echoed through the hallway, making the twins jump to their feet and stand to attention. Orion _hated_ it when the twins comforted each other, he liked it when the twins were in pain and preferred them to be miserable and obedient, scared and traumatised, which was becoming darker the older his eldest children got.

The twins broke apart instantly and Sirius stepped out in front of his sister. He was going to do whatever he could to try and help his beloved sister. He wanted to try and keep his promise to his sister.

Orion stood in front of them with the darkest expression either of them had ever seen upon his face. He stood beside his favourite niece, Bellatrix Black, the eldest of his three nieces. She was the eldest and most cruel and stood smirking at the twins with a sly satisfaction. She was happy to see them being punished, she was warped by the families tradition and would often and gladly help Orion and the other adults in the family torture those who strayed from the teachings of the family.

"Sirius, please don't!" Nova begged as she grasped hold of Sirius' arm, trying to get him to stop taking the blame as she seen her father's arm out stretched and ready to smack one of them. He didn't care who he punished, he believed that if one of them were in pain the other one would feel it as well.

A hard slap echoed through the house, hold making Nova flinch as the force sent her brother into the wall. It was hard for her to watch Sirius being beaten or tortured because of her, it was _her_ fault and _she_ should have been punished not Sirius. It wasn't like she could do anything to stop him from hurting them. However, she knew it that the guilt would still fester inside her as it always did when her brother got hurt because of her.

"I told you to stay in _your_ room until I had decided what to do with you," Orion snarled and glared at his only daughter as he began to advance towards her.

Nova could feel her heart pounding violently in her chest as her father began walking closer to him. She knew that she was in for it, in a worse way then she had ever paid before.

"Don't hurt her!" Sirius snarled and tried to move towards his sister, however Orion ended up grasping hold of him by his hair and shoving him against the wall.

"Shut up boy!" Orion snarled, slamming his son's head against the wall, trying to make him shut up.

"Bellatrix, take Nova to her room and teach her what happens when you disappoint and dishonour the Black Family!"

"With pleasure, come on Novie, let's go bond!" Bellatrix giggled and smirked as she advanced towards her little cousin, who stood terrified.

"Don't hurt her Bellatrix!" Sirius snarled protectively as he struggled against his father's grip.

Bellatrix just smirked back at him before grasping hold of Nova and apparating from sight.

Within a matter of minutes, Bellatrix and Nova reappeared in the smallest room of the house, Nova's bedroom, it was no bigger than the size of a broom closet. Bellatrix smirked and shoved Nova away from the door.

Nova stumbled and used the wall to help her to regain her balance. She could feel her hurt pounding inside her chest. She knew that she was in for hell and there was no escaping her cruel cousin.

"Now it is just me and you Novie, I've heard that you've been a bad girl," Bellatrix sneered smirking at her cousin.

Nova swallowed and backed away from her cousin. She moved backwards until her back hit the wall.

"I haven't done anything wrong!" Nova insisted as she watched her cousin's grin widen into a threatening smirk.

Nova quickly scanned her small bedroom, already she began to feel the effects of her panic attacks and claustrophobia beginning to grow inside her, making her feel trapped and alone. Bellatrix was giggling excitedly as she continued to advance towards her baby cousin. The thrill of the idea of being able to punish her was like a drug to Bellatrix.

When Bellatrix was inches away from Nova, the younger witch impulsively threw the closest thing to her in Bellatrix's face which just happened to be a book. The older witch wasn't expecting it and it allowed Nova some time to try and make a run for it.

"You shouldn't have done that Novie!"

Nova heard her cousin growl but she didn't care, she just wanted to get out, before she had a panic attack and before Bellatrix could torture her again, however she should have learnt by now that you never turn your back on another member of the Black family, especially not Bellatrix.

" _Carpe Retractum_!"

Just as Nova's fingertips closed over the golden knob of the door handle she felt an invisible rope wrap around her arms, binding them to her sides and yanking her backwards, closer to Bellatrix.

"Let go of me Bellatrix!" Nova snarled, struggling against the invisible rope as she felt one of Bellatrix's hands become entangled in her long black hair.

Bellatrix yanked Nova's head backwards and bent low into her ear. She could hear her cousin's pathetic whimpering as she tightened her grip.

"You are even more of a disappointment than Sirius!" She hissed in her ear before throwing her to the ground.

Nova gasped in pain as she fell to the dark wooden floor of her cramped bedroom. She was terrified, her breathing slowly becoming more rapid as the panic began to build up inside her.

" _Colloportus_!"

The sound of the door clicking and locking shut as Bellatrix waved her curved 12 and ¾ inch walnut dragon heartstring core wand at the door, moving her hand in the shape of a 'n' before flicking it upwards as though she was going to make an 'm' in the air.

"Just let me go Bella, you don't need to do this," Nova pleaded as she continued to struggle but to no avail.

Bellatrix smirked, becoming more and more satisfied with the sound of her cousin's begs and pleads. She hadn't even started yet and her little cousin was already begging for mercy.

"But you see, dear cousin, you haven't been listening to your father," She giggled with a small smile of excitement.

"And you know what happens when you disappoint the family,"

Nova shook her head as fear took the complete hold on her. Her grey eyes shone with fear as she watched Bellatrix point the wand towards her and without batting a single eyelid, her cousin spoke the words of a curse that she had felt the effects of since she was a little girl.

" _Crucio_!"

Nova shrieked in agony as she felt the sensation of a dozen white-hot knives stabbing into her skin, her screams echoed through the halls of the house as her body shook and thrashed with agony.

"Stop! Bella please!" She begged, shrieking in agony and yet she knew that her cousin was far from finished…


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

The Taste of Freedom

The pain seemed to never end. Nova had lost all sense of time and the awareness of her surroundings was beginning to slowly slip away as the panic attacks consumed her. Her screams of pain had been silenced long ago as her throat hurt too much, it was a miracle that the young witch had not torn her fragile vocal cords with how much she had been screaming and for how _long_ she had been screaming for. All that remained now was the sound of her strangulated wheezes as she tried to steady her breathing but in her dazed and delirious state it was useless.

The young witch was numb. Her body aching as she lay on the blood stained wooden floor, her limbs twitching simultaneously because of the multiple times the Crucitaus Curse had been cruelly inflicted upon her. She could faintly hear the muffled sound of Bellatrix cackling as she left the tiny room. Nova whimpered as a multiple of shocks of pain attacked her body as it made even the smallest of movements.

Nova sobbed as blood escaped her mouth as the walls began to close in. She had not always been claustrophobic. It only started when Orion began to lock her inside her tiny room. These attacks only got worse when Bellatrix had finished Hogwarts and was legally allowed to use magic, that was when Sirius and Nova found themselves as their cousin's favourite practice dummies, Nova more so than Sirius.

The symptoms of her claustrophobia always hit her all at once. First, she would be consumed with the feeling of her ribs slowly crushing her lungs as her chest gradually became tighter, resulting in occasionally coughing. She began sobbing harder as she couldn't breathe, the dryness of her mouth making matters worse for her.

"S-Sirius," She gasped and wheezed as she tried to call for her twin, but it was no use. Her vision was slowly darkening and tears slipped from her eyes. She did not want to pass out for she knew she would have horrendous nightmares where she had to relive the torturous punishments that she received frequently.

Nightmares and memories consumed the young witch's mind as she fought with every aching fibre and muscle of her weak being to stay awake, but she knew inside herself that she was fighting a pointless battle and soon it appeared that she was trapped within her own prison within her mind, a prison that made her relive every painful minute of her existence.

Suddenly after what felt like hours, maybe even days, Nova's heavy grey eyes opened and weakly looked around her small bedroom with a weak and disorientated vision that made everything look blurry. She could just about hear a muffled voice calling her name and yet she just wanted to sleep.  
A sudden creak made her head snap around to see a blurry figure kneeling in front of her, almost immediately fear gripped her, and she tried to move away. Nova shook her head, believing her older cousin had returned to punish her further.

"P-please B-Bella!" She begged weakly, "I-I'll be good, I-I promise!"

"No Nova, please do not move!" A familiar soft voice pleaded with her, making her stay still. "Merlin's beard Novie, I am so sorry I was not here to protect you!"

The injured witch was weak and yet she forced her heavy eyelids to stay open, blinking them rapidly until her vision cleared. There was no way that kind and gentle voice could belong to anyone other than her beloved and caring brother…or had Bellatrix created a batch of Polyjuice potion…

"S-Siri?" Nova whimpered as she tried to move but her whole body ached.

"Yes, Nova it is me, please do not move," Sirius begged her, tears shining in the identical grey eyes that stared back at her.

Nova felt her head nodding weakly, promising him that she would not move. The guilt and sadness inside those mirrors were enough to convince her of who was truly kneeling in front of her.

"I swear, I will try harder at protecting you," Sirius' voice wobbled and started to break as the young wizard was losing his tough composure. The sight of his sister lying broken and bloody before him. Why could he not look after her!? Why was he so _useless_?

"I _promise_ one day we w _ill_ get out of here, one day the two of us will run wild and _free_!"

A small smile slowly danced across Nova's pale face. The idea of leaving this dungeon gave her hope and strength to keep fighting. The floor suddenly vanished from underneath her as two strong arms lifted her up and carried her out of her prison. The invisible heavy weight that was once again pressing down upon her eyes and this time Nova was too tired to fight to stay awake.

It felt like a few days later, but, it was only a few hours later. Nova slowly began to open her eyes to see Sirius sitting in the seat opposite her while she lay on his bed, in his room that was almost twice the size of her own.

"Hey Novie, how are you feeling?" Sirius asked gently smiling at his twin as he finished rubbing healing potions on her wounds before bandaging her arms as best he could.

"I am okay Siri," Nova smiled at her brother as she slowly pushed herself to lie back against the old mahogany headboard.

"Good because I don't know about you, but I _need_ to get out of this house,"

Nova smiled eagerly at the idea of being able to escape the godforsaken house. She nodded and rose carefully from Sirius' bed.

Sirius watched his sister with worry and fear in case she would hurt herself even more than she was already was. His eyes glistened with concern as the young wizard had his arms outstretched, ready to catch her even just to steady her for there were times where Nova was too stubborn for her own good.

"Come on Siri, I will be fine," Nova giggled, grabbing her brother's hand and pulled him up off his bed.

Sirius laughed and followed her down the hall. He enjoyed watching his sister smile and seeing that childish side of her show itself always brought a smile to his face, although his smile could sometimes be misinterpreted as a smirk of mischief.

Creeping across the landing was difficult to say the least, for Number 12 Grimmauld Place was a very old house and thus the floorboards lined throughout the house and creaked like an old rocking chair. Yet it always seemed to be the floorboards on the landing that seemed to always betray the twins. The sun seemed to always miss the landing window, in fact it missed most windows of the manor, whether it was on purpose or not was a mystery.

The grand window was always locked, but this did not phase either Nova nor Sirius. Sirius shared a sneaky smirk with his twin, who carefully pulled one of her hairpins out of her black hair and handed it to him.

Sirius waved his hand and mockingly bowed in thanks before proceeding to quietly pick the lock on the window as he had done many times before, he was determined to get the two of them out of this prison.

Nova closed her eyes and allowed a cool breeze of freedom wash over her as the window gently swung open. It was sad how the smallest breeze could bring a smile to their faces. No one knew the truth. No one was _allowed_ to discover the truth and sadly Nova had learnt that lesson the hard way.

"Nov, are you okay?" Sirius whispered as he carefully placed a hand upon her shoulder, knowing she was thinking about things that she should not be thinking about and blaming herself for past events that were completely out of her control.

Nova nodded as she cleared her mind before she was swept into horrid flashbacks of the past and feared that she would never be able to forget about what had happened to her favourite teacher from Beauxbatons Academy.

"Good, now after you," Sirius smirked, gesturing to the open window.

The young witch did not have to even think before she swiftly climbed up and sat down on the window ledge for just a few minutes, taking in the freedom that was building inside her, before she began climbing down the rusty pipe, followed by her brother.

The excitement started to increase as Nova's feet touched the pavement that was cemented to the ground in front of Number 12 Grimmuald Place. She wasted no time in taking in the sights that felt so strange to her. How strange it was for Nova to stand there, watching all other people going about their daily business, little happy families together and being kind. If it was possible for other parents to be kind to their children, then why did it appear to be so difficult for her parents to do the same.

Was it something that Nova had done as a child? Was the abuse all her fault? Was she really a mistake like her parents said?

"Nov?" Sirius' voice pulled Nova out of her thoughts and back to reality. Nova blinked, ridding the haze from her eyes.

"S-Siri?" She asked, blushing with embarrassment.

"Come on, let's get going," Sirius said gently placing his hands on her shoulders.

Nova nodded. She was mentally slapping herself for being so pathetic. It was ridiculous for her to continuously be getting stuck in her memories of her past. Sirius smiled at her before breaking into a sprint and rushing down the street.

"Hey," Nova shouted as she began running after him.

The thrill of chasing her brother made her smile and forget about the troubles of her past. Sirius, as of yet, was the only person who could make her relax and forget about her panic attacks and fear about their parents, Bellatrix and the other cruel members of the Black family.

Unable to stop the excited laughter from escaping her lips, Nova ran through the streets of London chasing after her brother. As per usual, the streets of London were packed with wizards, witches and muggles who were going about their daily business, occasionally stopping to gaze on with confusion and bewilderment at the two ragged looking teenagers as they sprinted passed. No one would have imagined that the bruise covered twins belonged to a wealthy and a well-respected family like the Black's. Anyone who saw them racing through the streets would have believed that the twins were a couple of orphaned hooligans who were running from the law after being caught pick-pocketing like some common street-rat.

The twins continued to race down the streets, neither of them stopping even for a second as they darted past bystanders, only giving a quick apologetic shout whenever they accidentally knocked someone over. Neither Sirius nor Nova were bothered as the fallen pedestrians cursed and yelled as they angrily shook their fists in the air. This only made the siblings laugh, the thrill increasing within Nova with each gust of wind that hit her face as she whizzed by. Never in her entire life had she ever felt so joyful, the freedom given her such joyous sensations that the perils never even entered her mind.

Just a few meters in front of her, Sirius would occasionally glance backwards, grinning like a hyena and yet there was still a hint of smugness dancing across his grinning face. Nova, knowing that her brother would hold this over her head, dug deep inside herself and used that little bit of energy which she should have saved for healing, and quickened her pace.

"Gotcha…" Nova panted, wrapping her bandaged arms around Sirius' neck as they finally stopped running.

The young witch grinned at her brother and although it was not her usual smile, Sirius would take it gladly. He said goodbye to her natural smile long ago and now, he was lucky if he managed to get any smile out of her at all.

"Alright," Sirius laughed, breathless from the running as well.

Nova giggled, coughing now and again as she hugged him. Her legs ached but she was too happy to care. She hugged Sirius tightly so that he would know how thankful she was for all he had done and always did do to protect her and look out for her. No words were needed between the twins, their bond was unlike any other.

"Come on, let's head to Diagon Alley," Sirius suggested, sucking in air to catch his breath before patting his sister's back as she let go.

Nova nodded excitedly, she had never felt this alive in a _long_ time, at least not since they were all very young, and their favourite cousin Andromeda, had taken the twins and Regulus to a Muggle park. Neither Nova nor her brothers had seen something as _amazing_ as that small park before in their lives, nor had they seen anything like it since.

Dodging past busy shoppers, Nova followed Sirius towards a side alley where one of the secret passages to Diagon Alley was situated. Nerves began to build inside her as she tightened her grip on Sirius' hand as he led her down Charing Cross Road, towards the old wizard pub.

The Leaky Cauldron was sandwiched in between a dull looking Muggle bookshop and a Muggle record store. The pub was not invisible to Muggles like other places within the wizarding community, in fact it was hidden in the best possible way, in plain sight. From the eyes of Muggles, the popular pub looked like an old, broken-down shop, when it was a rather dark and shabby place and yet always filled with the same number of wizards, witches and magical beings.

Nova could hear her heart hammering inside her ears as the fear of being caught by, not necessarily her father as she knew that Orion Black would be too pompous and arrogant to enter the Leaky Cauldron, but the possibility of pumping into one of his many friends was too high for her to ignore. Keeping her head down, the young witch preceded to follow her brother, trusting him to lead her the right way and to keep her safe.


End file.
